Chapter Seven: Mirso Village

…

...

"W-Wait!"

Naofumi groaned while sitting down on a large rock surrounded by tall green grass.

"Come back here!" Raphtalia yelled somewhere nearby.

Naofumi tiredly clutched his shoulder, which had a long quill embedded in it. 'When was the last time that I slept in a decent bed... or ate a meal that had any taste?'

He could barely remember.

A long time of living out in the wild had taken its toll on the Shield Hero. Even with the good camping gear that he'd bought before leaving Lute Village, this was hell. The latest monster had only served to remind him of that fact.

At first, they only had to deal with Balloons, Mush, Usapils, PikyuPikyu, and other small, weak monsters. Then, as they moved further away from Lute, they ran into stronger monsters. Some of which were capable of hurting him. They did give better shields, but they were far more bothersome than the smaller monsters they'd been killing before.

It was especially tedious when said monsters invaded their campsite at night, again and again, forcing either him or Raphtalia to have to stay up and keep watch while the other slept. It was hard to find good places to camp where they wouldn't have to worry about nightly monster attacks, whilst also allowing Naofumi to gather nearby herbs and compound in peace.

It didn't help that he was a wanted fugitive either. But that wasn't his immediate concern at the moment.

Today, they were grinding outside a place Raphtalia called Mirso Village.

Unfortunately, during their grinding, he had been attacked by a large, deadly, level 27 porcupine the size of a boulder.

Gritting his teeth, he pulled out the large porcupine needle from his bloodied right shoulder and put it into his shield. It unlocked the Animal Needle Shield.

'I can't believe I let my guard down, again.' Naofumi hadn't thought that it'd pose that much of a threat. The porcupine was much smaller compared to the other new monsters that they'd encountered.

He had severely underestimated it.

"Master Naofumi! It's coming for you again!" Raphtalia yelled in the tall grass.

Naofumi looked up, and the small but deadly, black needled, glowing red-eyed porcupine monster that attacked him earlier came charging out of the tall grass in front of him. Its beady, red irises glared at him with hatred as it screeched again and charged to attack him.

Naofumi stood up, the shield on his arm changing to the Pipe Shield. He'd gotten it by absorbing a piece of rusty iron pipe that someone had thrown away on the side of the road. And, just like the rope, he'd gotten a skill from it.

"Shield Prison!"

Suddenly, the large porcupine was surrounded by a series of plates and chains that formed a large green ball. Five meters in diameter. It wasn't an attack skill, which he still had as of yet to find a shield that'd do more damage; still, it definitely helped him and Raphtalia out in their grinding.

"Hahhhh!" Raphtalia jumped from out of the tall grass nearby and brought her blade down right as the Shield Prison disappeared. The porcupine monster died in a spray of blood all over the ground.

Naofumi allowed himself a small moment to smile before he grit his teeth again. He gripped his shoulder where he'd been wounded. 'Of course. I finally took off all those bandages from getting hurt last time, and I got hurt again.' The taste of victory quickly soured over.

He was lucky to have the legendary shield's powers to dull the pain and quicken his rate of healing. Though he wished that he'd physically recover as fast as his HP gauge did.

+200 EXP

Naofumi: LV. 24

'Oh well. At least we got stronger from killing this thing.' He looked on the bright side. As hard as it was to do it these days.

"Master Naofumi! I did it!"

Naofumi finally glanced at Raphtalia, who now looked very different compared to who she was a couple of weeks ago. For one, she didn't look like a scared little kid anymore. Rather, at level 27, she looked more like a confident young adult. 'I still can't believe that Elhart wasn't messing with me. It's like she changed overnight after increasing 3 levels that one day.'

Besides the level change, Raphtalia had grown a shocking amount. She was up to his shoulders now instead of around his gut. Her outfit was the same as the one she wore as a little kid. He'd been fortunate to take Elhart's suggestion to heart. By absorbing a needle with some thread in it that he and Raphtalia scavenged from an abandoned, overturned cart next to a road, he gained a shield that gave him sewing abilities. Unlike the mining boost he received from the Pickaxe Shield though, the sewing boost he received was like receiving bare apprentice-level training and required him to work hard to make what Raphtalia was wearing now.

Still, despite the obstacles that had involved, he'd managed to remake her outfits into ones that were several sizes larger to fit her new more mature young adult form. She complained about them being tight, but he had no idea why. Was she not satisfied with them?

He couldn't help but feel bothered by the thought that he was turning into some kind of butler.

Raphtalia's tea-red eyes had also remarkably deepened in color and now seemed to hold joyful sparks of energy in them all the time.

The weirdness of her rapid growth aside, Naofumi also began to feel a little awkward in her presence lately. Even if he wouldn't admit it out loud, he often caught himself thinking that she really was turning into a beautiful woman… and he realized he was doing that now. 'Nope. Be still my heart. Don't think of her that way. It's probably because I've been separated from other people for too long.'

He did, however, allow himself to feel a little pride. Seeing this former shy slave girl who feared the sight of blood proudly holding up the bloody porcupine carcass for him. 'She really has come a long way...' He grimaced again though from the pain he felt in his shoulder. 'But I think we're going to need some new and better equipment if I want to be proud of her past the next wave.'

Hearing his grunt of pain, Raphtalia finally took the chance to closely examine him with her eyes. "Master Naofumi! Why didn't you tell me that this monster hurt you!?" She asked him angrily, dropping the porcupine monster to the side so she could use both hands to move the cloak and the beat-up cloth chainmail armor out of the way to better examine his new wound.

"It's fine. I can barely feel- ow!" He yelled at the end after Raphtalia poked the skin next to the wound. The shield might have helped with dulling the pain, but he had yet to check his status window, so he didn't see that the needle of the porcupine had also given him a poison status effect. Making the flesh around his wound more susceptible to pain.

"Yeah, no pain my #%!" She said sarcastically, pulling out bandages and medical alcohol from her pack. According to the status magic window, her master's HP bar hadn't dropped all that much. But he had a bleeding status effect on him that needed to be taken care of along with a poisoned status.

"Since when do you cuss?" Naofumi asked.

"Since you do it all the time," Raphtalia rolled her eyes.

"I do not- holy $#!%!" He yelled at the end when Raphtalia rubbed some alcohol into the wound. Almost immediately after, the poison and bleed status effects disappeared from beside Naofumi's HP Bar in Raphtalia's HUD. It was cool that Naofumi had learned how to compound medical alcohol. Its description revealed that it could cure certain basic status afflictions... but it had to be applied to the affected area, and unfortunately, it still stung like hell on an open wound.

"Case in point." She smirked. "I swear, you act like a little kid every time you're hurt Master Naofumi." She teased, bandaging up his new wound after cleaning it.

Oh yeah, he was definitely annoyed. He hoped this teenager phase didn't last forever. It was such a pain to deal with.

"Who are you to call me a little kid?" Naofumi asked grumpily, though he had to admit, it was getting increasingly harder for him to deny that Raphtalia was the same little kid that he'd known before. Even as she matured physically, it was like her mind and emotions were growing at the same pace. In some ways, she proved to be more mature and rational than he'd been before coming to this world…

Though, in his opinion, she still retained a lot of her immaturity. It also wouldn't have hurt for her to tone down her sass a bit. Where the hell did she even get all this biting sarcasm and lip fro-

"Master Naofumi, I am not a child anymore!" She said, standing up to pout at him childishly.

"Case in point." He rolled his eyes while saying it sarcastica- he paused.

Oh, right. That's where it came from.

"I'm not a child!" Raphtalia again yelled defensively. Naofumi would have smirked if it wasn't for the fact that his wound still felt like hell. "And besides, I think it's about time we got you some new equipment Master Naofumi!"

"I was thinking maybe it'd be better if we upgraded your sword again and got you some armor since I have-" He was saying, trying to point out the fact that she still didn't have armor yet, and that he still had his cloth chainmail he'd gotten in the beginning.

"Master Naofumi, it's time you took care of yourself first for once! That cloth chainmail is so beat up, even that weak porcupine monster was able to tear right through it! If a monster that weak was able to hurt you, how will you survive the wave in three days?!" She asked, getting into his face.

Wait, she thought it was weak?! Then again, she'd killed the thing in one blow, so maybe she had a point...

"I'll be fine, I'm more worried about-" He tried to say. She was supposed to come first.

"Master Naofumi." One of her fingers booped him on the nose as she stared down at him seriously. "Stop messing around with your life." Raphtalia pulled out the sword she had gotten from Dragon village. It was a long sharp blade made from magic iron, with a grip made from dragon scales, at least, according to the blacksmith that she'd purchased it from. "Or you will die!" She said, the blade of her sword shifted diagonally to reflect Naofumi's face on it.

...

Naofumi stared at his own reflection with wide eyes. 'I… I don't know whether she's getting rude, or if she's learning to assert herself more. Either way, it's working.' He finally gave in. "Okay, okay. I'll go to the village with you this time. But my identity still needs to remain a secret while we're there." He said seriously.

That had been the main thing working to his advantage so far. The guard from Lute had been right. The Church had known what Raphtalia looked like as a small child. But they didn't know what she looked like as a young adult. Or that she currently looked like a young adult now. She'd been able to enter a town whenever they came close to one to sell the monster drops that they didn't need, buy supplies they required, and most importantly: gather information about what was happening in the kingdom.

Before the information though, there'd been an unnerving discovery from her selling their items. Apparently, she was a better salesman than he was. She could sell whatever they collected at a higher price than he'd thought possible. And she didn't act or anything. They just thought she was 'cute' or something.

'Are the people in this country a bunch of lolicons?' Sure, she was a young adult, but she wasn't a grown-up yet, even if she complained that she was a grown-up. It was hard for him to picture the girl in front of him without seeing the little girl he'd gotten to know only a few weeks ago.

He still felt guilty about ripping her childhood away like this too. And because he still hadn't filled Raphtalia in on his reasons for wanting to remain anonymous. He always put it off with the excuse: "When you're older, I'll tell you."

Now, as for the information she collected, it turned out the Lute guard was right. The blame for the deaths of the church's agents in that village was placed on Naofumi. However, they had no idea where he'd gone. Thus, they'd fled to a part of the country where they weren't currently looking. The information she gathered helped them to know where he was rumored to be hiding. Thus, they'd been able to evade both the Church and Melromarc's Knights.

...

"Master Naofumi? Master Naofumi?"

Naofumi shook his head. Raphtalia was in front of his face, looking at him weirdly. "What?"

"You just spaced out again. Did you hear what I asked, Master Naofumi?" She asked curiously.

Naofumi groaned. Crap, he really had to remember to not think these things over in his head when he felt so tired. "Yeah. Whatever you think is best."

Raphtalia looked surprised, then she gave him a happy nod. Her tail started wagging happily behind her. "Great! I'll pack up the campsite so we can spend the night in the village!" She said happily, running off to where they had been camping at.

"Wait, Raphtalia-" He hadn't agreed to that?! Had she really asked him that?! However, the Tanuki/somehow Raccoon girl had already disappeared into the forest. He groaned to himself and laid back on the grassy ground.

'She even retains the energy of a kid… what a bother...'

He knew he couldn't complain when she got back. It actually was a good idea for him to rest up at an inn before the wave struck. He could use a little time to actually sleep on a nice soft mattress. Especially now that he had yet another injury to deal with. 'This makes me wish that I had another one of those healing potions that Elhart packed. Or maybe some magic to heal this stupid thing with. I'm getting better at medicine and first aid. But it isn't enough. Not if I want to survive...'

…

After a little while, Raphtalia came running back, looking as energetic and happy as ever. "Come on, Master Naofumi!" She yelled happily, pulling him back up off the ground. "You're going to love it there!"

He grimaced in pain again from the wound. "Careful Raphtalia." He said through gritted teeth.

"Oops, I'm sorry Master Naofumi!"

He sighed, covering his face in a soft facepalm. "Just don't call me by my name in town." He muttered quietly.

"You got it, Master Naofumi!" She replied happily.

"Ugh…" Freaking teenagers...

After paying the toll to the town guardsman Naofumi and Raphtalia entered into the small humble abode of Mirso Village. The sun was high up in the sky, and Naofumi had his cape wrapped around himself along with a green hood he'd made to put over his head and hide his face. 'I seriously can't believe I'm doing this…'

"And that over there is where the shopkeeper who gave me all that free food lives. And over there is the bathhouse that has the best lotions I've ever felt in my life." Raphtalia was telling Naofumi excitedly, pointing from building to building as they walked.

Naofumi sniffed himself and grimaced. That had been another downside of camping for so long. Cold rivers without soap could only do so much to clean oneself. 'I'd stop by the bathhouse, but it'd have to be a private session.'

"Do they allow people to bathe privately there?" He asked Raphtalia.

"Oh yeah! I didn't trust some of the men eyeing me when I first entered, so I got a room all for myself!" She responded happily.

He felt a flare of anger at that. 'If she ever points out those men, they'll wish that they were never born.'

"And over here is the blacksmith's shop where we're going first to order you some new armor!" Raphtalia said happily.

"Yay me." He replied back to her blandly.

"Come now master-" She remembered his order just in time to cut herself off. "Jun!" She said awkwardly. "I bet you'll love whatever it is you decide to get!" She finished happily.

"Sure, and hell will freeze over eventually." He muttered out loud.

Keeping a positive attitude, Raphtalia walked into the shop, dragging her master by the hand behind her. "Oh, if it ain't me new favorite customer!" A big burly man said behind the counter in an accent Naofumi had never heard before. "And what can ay do for ye today lassie?!" He asked her happily with a big happy grin on his face.

'Hmph, what a lolicon. She's a young adult, idiot! Stop thinking she's your age!'

"My friend Jun here needs some new armor. His old armor is starting to break." Raphtalia said happily. "The problem is that he's a little shy around other people and he doesn't like them knowing who he is," Raphtalia said, smiling happily back at Naofumi.

'Ughhhhhhhh… If that doesn't scream suspicious, then I don't know what does. Why did you convince me to do this?' He mentally facepalmed.

Oh yeah, she hadn't convinced him. She'd asked him while he was distracted by the million other things on his mind.

Imagine his surprise then when the blacksmith started laughing jovially. "Ahhhhh… I see, I see. S'alright little missie. I've met me plenty of shy folks in my life. You go and take your friend to the dressing room and take all the measurements for me then!" He said happily.

"As long as I do measurements for her too. She needs armor just as badly as me." Naofumi finally spoke blandly.

He could feel Raphtalia glaring into the side of his head. Was she really mad about that? Teenagers… What a bother.

The blacksmith continued to smile jovially. "Of course, laddie, I'd be happy to make some armor for such a pretty little thing any day, hell I'll do it for half the price!"

Raphtalia beamed happily at the blacksmith. "You would!? Thank you so much, Jerry! I don't know how we could ever repay you!" She said.

"Ah, don't ya worry your wee head about it, lassie. It's not often I get through and pretty looking folks like yourselves to visit me store twice!" He said happily, gesturing over to the dressing rooms where they could get each other's measurements. "Especially ones who buy from me precious stock of custom-made weapons!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." He was probably just layering it on so they'd spend more money.

Naofumi entered the dressing room first. It was small, barely six by six feet. Raphtalia entered behind him and closed the curtain on them both. "You're so lucky my armor's coming at a discount." She said icily to him. "Otherwise there would have been no way it could have fit our budget."

"Seriously? Are we going to talk about this now?" Naofumi whispered to her.

"Of course we are." She whispered back angrily. "You know we can't spend our money left and right. Especially with the wave being so close."

"But we have plenty because of the monster drops. And from me compounding medicine and crafting items." He pointed out. He got a huff from Raphtalia at that. "Besides, I already have a naturally high defense. All you have is attack and agility. I'd feel a little better if you had some armor too." He said back with a small amount of care in his tone.

"I appreciate your concern, Master... Jun." Raphtalia didn't sound angry anymore. "But I'd also feel better knowing you could handle yourself should you be surrounded by monsters that are stronger than that porcupine."

Naofumi sighed.

"Let's just call a compromise and get on with it." She suggested as she pulled out the measuring rope the blacksmith had given her and got to work.

"Sure, like you're totally giving me something in return for doing this against my will." He muttered dryly.

Raphtalia fumed behind him. "I'm getting armor too, aren't I? So just, drop the cloak and armor. Otherwise, the measurements will be too big." She ordered.

Since when had it turned to her ordering him around?! This teenage phase got more annoying by the minute!

Naofumi took off the cloak and chainmail cloth without thinking too much about the changes his body had gone through the last few weeks. After all, it wasn't like there was too much of him that was appealing to begin with because of his former life as an otaku… at least, that's what he thought until he noticed Raphtalia hadn't moved behind him. "Raphtalia is everything-" He was asking as he turned around.

Raphtalia was red in the face staring at him with eyes wide. Her breathing had also gotten rugged, and her eyes were narrowed to slits. Naofumi's eyes widened a little bit in surprise at the sudden way she was acting. "Raphtalia-" He tried to speak.

She snapped out of whatever trance she was in. "Turn back around! I wasn't finished!" She ordered him loudly. The red in her cheeks took on a brighter hue if that was even possible.

"But-" Naofumi tried to say.

"Is everything alright in there, lassie?" Jerry the blacksmith asked from the counter.

"Yes! Everything's perfectly fine!" Raphtalia yelled back, her voice cracking slightly. "Now turn back around!" She ordered Naofumi loudly as she grabbed him forcefully by the shoulders and turned him around.

'YEOWWWW!' Raphtalia gripped his wound accidentally.

She realized what she'd done a second too late. "I'm sorry! Are you okay?!" She asked frantically.

"Never better." Naofumi gritted out as he stayed facing away. Not wanting to risk her having to do something like that again.

"You two be needing any help-" Jerry asked outside.

"NO!" Both of them yelled at the same time. "Just get on with it. Before he gets suspicious." He whispered.

"O-Okay." Raphtalia mumbled nervously.

'Seriously, what the hell is up with her today? First, she overreacts when I get injured, then she gets snippy with me about a budget, and now she's… hell, I don't even know what she's doing now.'

The feeling he'd got from her stare though was the feeling that prey got when they were being stared down by a predator. 'Maybe I'm just overthinking it. This is Raphtalia we're talking about here. She's not into that kind of stuff.' He tried his best to calm down.

Raphtalia quickly went through the various measurements, muttering "I'm sorry." every now and then. After she was done, she turned around so Naofumi could measure her. He tried not to imagine it, but even with her facing away it still felt like she was blushing really hard. 'Seriously, what the hell is up with her? Don't tell me this is another teenage thing in this world. Ugh, not even I was this annoying at her age.' Was it weird to think that when she was still chronologically 10 years old?

But she wasn't a kid anymore. Were demi-humans even judged by their age, or were they judged by how quickly they matured? If it was the former, then it'd suck to mature to adulthood and then have to wait eight to ten years before you were finally allowed to drink.

How was one race capable of making him question everything he'd thought to be normal?!

At least her race didn't operate like the versions of elves he'd read in fantasy stories. He could be an old man by the end of his life twice over and Raphtalia would still be a child. Though he was wondering if he preferred her as a child than as a teenager. At least child her hadn't been so sassy and confusing to figure out.

She'd also been really cute and adorable. And while teenage Raphtalia was still cute, she wasn't innocent cute.

...

'... I never realized how muscular he'd gotten underneath all that cloak and armor.' Raphtalia thought to herself in embarrassment. She never imagined that Naofumi's systematic stress relief in the form of balloon monster abuse, which he partook in on a daily basis to deal with his day-to-day frustrations, would actually transform what had started as a lanky frame into a rugged and well-defined form. Not enough that he'd ever look like a bodybuilder. But enough that he now appeared fit, appealing... and attractive-

Raphtalia's face burned a brighter red. 'Oh no! I can't be thinking about that here! Then it might lead to us kissing, and then… if my parents weren't lying to me, I'll get pregnant! And then things will get really complicated between Master Naofumi and I!'

She tried to think of other calming thoughts. Not on the fact that Naofumi was carefully measuring her without a second thought. It was like being measured by a doctor.

A hot, sexy, attractive doctor.

Eventually, the two walked out of the dressing room. Naofumi had his armor, cloak, and hood back on. Raphtalia's face was still slightly red from the aftereffects of all the blushing and measurements, but at least she had managed to calm herself down.

"Did everything go okay lass?" The blacksmith asked quizzically. "Things sounded a little… different, back there."

"Oh yes, everything went great Jerry!" Raphtalia lied as naturally as she breathed. "Here are the measurements we took of each other as well as our levels!" She handed Jerry their measurements. The blacksmith wrote down the numbers on a piece of paper.

When he was done, Jerry looked over it. "Hmmm, hmmmm... oh, um…

"I don't know how to put this, lass." He finally said, sounding embarrassed.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Well, um, I don't think there's anything in me inventory that'd fit… and I'm afraid there aren't enough materials in me shop to make armor for the levels you two've attained."

…

Raphtalia's ears fell as some of her excitement disappeared. "Oh…"

"Oh, don't worry though! I do have a friend and fellow blacksmith who could do it for ya!" He said excitedly, attempting to cheer the girl up.

Raphtalia's excitement came back all at once. It worked. "Really?! Where is this blacksmith?!"

"He lives in the Capital!" Jerry said jovially.

...

'There's no freaking way…' "Let me guess, is his name Elhart?" Naofumi dryly asked.

"Why yes, it is!" Jerry responded happily.

'... Great… just great…'

"... Um, Jerry? Is there anywhere else you could think of where my friend and I could go to get some armor?" Raphtalia asked kindly.

"Not if you want to arrive in time before the next wave missie… Raphtalia and Naofumi, was it? Or do you want me to call ya Jun too?" Jerry asked.

He gave a wink to the shocked Naofumi who sputtered at having been found out so easily. Raphtalia's tail bristled in shock. "Of course I knew who ya were laddie! I saw the way you matched Elhart's description the moment you walked through the door! Cold fierce eyes on the lankiest, toughest frame you could lay ya eyes on!" He said with a belly-aching laugh, giving Naofumi a slap on the back that would have felled a normal person that didn't have a high defense stat. "Don't ya worry though, after what me friend Elhart told me, I wouldn't sell out the Shield Hero for anything!"

"Oh, um, what did he tell you-" Raphtalia tried to ask. Other than that one night she remembered gripping tightly to him as she heard loud yelling behind them, and a few vague conversations she'd accidentally eavesdropped on while in other villages, she didn't know why Naofumi wanted to remain anonymous.

"It's nothing." Naofumi quickly cut her off, drawing a curious glance from Jerry and a hurt expression from Raphtalia. "Look, do we really have no other choice?" He was seriously wondering why he wasn't grabbing Raphtalia and running out the door. This person knew who he was! He'd overheard enough conversations the past three weeks between random travelers while hiding to piece together that his reputation, if he'd had one as the Shield Hero, was being ruined left and right by everyone!

Jerry shook his head. "I wish there were laddie, but other people have already cleaned out me higher-end inventory for the Wave, and with how high leveled you two are, the only way ya could get gear best suited for you would be to either go back to the Capital, travel to another city's blacksmith, or search the village blacksmiths out here for one that possibly has any available gear left." He responded.

...

"And, though it pains me pride as a blacksmith to admit this, there's no one I'd trust more to make armor for a hero than me good buddy Elhart."

…

Naofumi sighed. 'I guess we can't always count on the small towns to have everything we'd need to survive.' It didn't help that the next Wave could hit any day now. He hadn't kept track of how long it'd been since he left Lute Village. "Fine, I guess since we don't have a choice... Is there a way we could sneak into the Capital to get to Elhart's shop?" Naofumi asked. "I'm not exactly welcome there right now."

Jerry put a hand to his chin in thought. "There is a way... but you're probably not going to like it," Jerry eventually replied.

"What are you thinking of?" Naofumi asked, already dreading his decision not to run as soon as this blacksmith showed he knew who he was.

Then again, he hadn't run to warn the town guard, so maybe he could be a little trustworthy...

"He was right, I don't like this plan at all," Naofumi said grumpily.

It had only been a few hours, and he was already regretting trusting the blacksmith. Though to be honest, it was because of the sideways look that Raphtalia had given him after he was told the plan that made him agree to it.

Honestly, that girl could be damn scary when she wanted to be.

What happened to the sweet, innocent little kid that made him feel guilty about buying a child soldier to fight for him? He was missing her more and more with every day that passed.

"At least he made this crate big enough to fit the both of us, Master Naofumi," Raphtalia said queasily next to him in the darkness where the only light came from small holes drilled in the sides of the crate. The crate was four feet tall, six feet long, and six feet wide. Sitting in the back with many other crates being pulled by a pair of horses. Even though he couldn't stand up, he could at least sit comfortably.

"Although, he could have done something about the smell. You really stink, Master Naofumi." She admitted.

"Is it my fault we didn't get a chance to go by the bathhouses before we left?" Naofumi asked. 'Or the other shops, or the warm bed of the inn…' He thought longingly in his mind. He hoped the hardwood of the crate didn't make his body sorer than it already felt.

"He did give us an hour before he was going to personally deliver a shipment of 'rare monster drops and ores' to Elhart." Raphtalia pointed out.

"Well, I was hungry for something that was hot and fresh that wasn't cooked by me," Naofumi said grumpily because of the fact that all their plans for how the day would go had changed… again.

"Even though you still can't taste it?" Raphtalia asked curiously.

And that was the other half of why he was so grumpy. "Don't remind me. I'm still disappointed by that." He muttered.

…

Raphtalia made gagging sounds next to him. "By the way, why are you feeling queasy?" He asked. "I can't smell that bad now." Though to be honest, he'd believe her if it was because of him.

"I've, never really been a fan of, carriage rides before." She said more slowly, sounding more nauseous than she had before. She was trying to keep herself from vomiting in the tight space that the two of them occupied.

"Oi! Don't you dare vomit in here!" Naofumi yelled. That was the only way this situation could get more uncomfortable!

A rough bump made her stomach flip, and he didn't know if it was just him or not but her face might have been turning green. 'At least I know she gets motion sickness now. Who knows what could have happened if we discovered this down the road.' Naofumi sighed and put an arm over Raphtalia's shoulders in the dark. Though he didn't see it, Raphtalia's face burned a bright red all over again, eliminating the green color that had been filling it.

"Wh-what are you doing, Master Naofumi?!"

"Here, move your head here and focus on the sound of my heart. Take deep even breaths and drown out everything else." He ordered her.

Almost hesitantly, Raphtalia leaned her head against Naofumi's chest. Soon, she was hearing the sound of Naofumi's heart beating rhythmically in her ears. Tuning out everything else, she found her queasiness starting to dissipate. "Why am I feeling less sick now?" She asked curiously. The road didn't seem less bumpy than before.

"To explain, in my world, we have transportation similar to this. Though it's a lot more advanced. I didn't get queasy, but other kids did… one time, I saw a kid's mom put him in her lap, and had him start doing what I had you do. It worked for him." Naofumi said, quietly reminiscing on his homeworld for a moment. "I figured it might work here too."

...

"Master Naofumi, why don't you talk much about the world you're from?" Raphtalia asked curiously.

"I have my reasons for it," Naofumi said dryly. "For one. You wouldn't understand my world."

"You mean like how I don't understand why you don't like using your Air Strike Shield skill very often?" She asked.

…

Naofumi remained silent. She could feel the way his shoulders were tensed though. As if she had stepped on a painful subject. "It's okay, Master Naofumi. If you don't want to talk about it, then I won't push it." She said quietly, closing her eyes to continue listening closely to the beating of his heart.

…

He looked down at her, feeling guilty for almost wanting to lash out at her if it meant her not bringing it up again. 'I want to tell her… but I…' It wasn't that he didn't trust her. Sure the pessimistic part of his mind spoke up every now and then against her. But he couldn't deny that he trusted her more now than he did when he first met her. It was just… there were some things that he'd rather not talk about. With anyone. He just wanted to forget about it and move on...

One of his hands moved to rub the back of her head in a soothing motion. It was his silent way of saying sorry to her. She didn't speak again, but he could feel her smiling against him. After another moment, he could tell that she had fallen asleep. And despite how uncomfortable the crate was, he felt his eyes getting droopy too.

'I hope we both get to sleep in real beds soon. The last thing I need is to sleep on the ground somewhere again.' He thought tiredly to himself.

'Or in some damn tight compact crate that stinks.'

…

Naofumi's head had been resting against something plump and soft when he suddenly woke up. The crate that he and Raphtalia were in was being picked up. The jerking motion from it also caused Raphtalia to jerk awake.

"Wha-" She tried to ask groggily when his hand covered her mouth. Through the darkness, she looked up at him in surprise. If it was dark, that meant it was night outside. And though he couldn't see as well as she could in the darkness of the crate, he gave her a face that clearly told her to remain quiet.

She nodded her head against his hand to let him know she understood. He took his hand away and they both listened to what was happening outside after their crate was set on the ground.

"Hey, I already told the guards at the front gate what I was carrying lad?! Who are you and your goons to stop me and take out all me precious cargo?!" Jerry the blacksmith asked.

"It's a royal decree to inspect everything that goes in and out of this city." Naofumi didn't recognize the second voice. He suspected it was a Knight. "We're only following orders."

"Bull%$#*! I don't remember hearing about any of this!" Jerry cursed angrily at the man. "They certainly didn't tell me no bull like that at the gate!"

"Oh, but the royal decree for it is right here."

The bitchy voice that spoke then was definitely familiar.

Naofumi's blood ran cold, and his body tensed. 'There's no way… is my luck really that terrible?!'

Raphtalia looked up at him curiously. "Master Naofumi?" She whispered. His lips pulled back into a snarl, and a low unnatural growl escaped him. "Do you recognize who that is?" She asked quietly.

Naofumi could feel weeks of pent-up anger and hatred yearning to be released at that moment. She was part of the whole reason that he was forced to live the way he had for the past month. Why he couldn't be seen in public, and why he had to sneak into the Capital inside an uncomfortable hardwood crate. "Yeah. I know who that is." Naofumi said.

"Oh, First Princess, I didn't see you there with the Knights. Oh, and the Spear Lad is also with you?!" Jerry yelled.

"That's Spear Hero, thank you very much. And who else do you know that wields a spear like this?" Motoyasu asked.

Naofumi imagined the simp was likely showing off his spear right then.

"Anyways, we'll be looking through these crates ourselves. After all, it would be a pity if you were carrying something of value in there that the Heroes could use." Malty said in a low, seductive voice.

"Alright, you listen here lassie. Just because you're royalty doesn't mean you can-" Jerry tried to say angrily.

"Oh, but I can." Princess Malty said with a laugh. "After all, you wouldn't want to displease the King's wishes now, would you?" She asked, her voice bordering dangerously on a threat.

'How can Motoyasu stand to be with her!? Can't he tell that she's extorting this man out of his goods!?' He wanted nothing more than anything to burst out of the top of the crate, surprise everyone that was there, and give both Motoyasu and Bitch a new nose job.

However, he didn't because he knew what would happen if he revealed himself. Though at the rate things were going, it didn't look like he'd have much of a choice.

"And just what are ya implying you bi-" Jerry was responding heatedly.

"Jerry, there you are!"

All the talking that had been going on outside stopped. 'Wait, was that-' Naofumi thought in shock.

"Elhart, good to see ya, old friend!" Jerry said happily, most likely giving an embrace to the equally large blacksmith. "How ya been!?"

"First, what's going on here? I've been waiting for you to arrive for three days with the materials I requested." Elhart said grumpily.

"Well I woulda been unloading by now, but you see, the princess and her knights here are trying to take some of the rare items you requested for ya shop! They're giving me some bullcrap about it being some royal decree!" Jerry quickly explained the situation.

There was a short pause.

"WHAT!?" Elhart's yell of anger shook the crate. Naofumi pictured the old threatening man turning to face the group of knights, the Spear Hero, and the second princess. Naofumi was trying to peek out of one of the small air holes to see what was going on outside. But all he could see was a couple of the knights shaking in fear inside their armor.

"It's a royal decree. Anything that could be of value to the heroes in their efforts to prepare for the waves-" Malty was saying in the same arrogant bitchy 'I own the world' voice as before.

"To hell with your royal decrees! If you want some of the rare items in here, you'll have to wait for me to put them up for sale and buy them like everyone else!" Elhart yelled with finality.

Some of the Knights gasped. Naofumi himself was amazed. The balls on this smith were great indeed. He wished so badly he could see Myne's face. He would have loved to see the shocked look from not getting her way captured in a photo. The thought made him smile widely, and love Elhart even more.

You brave, wonderful blacksmith! He knew there'd been something good about him that'd make all this trouble worth it!

"How dare you speak that way to a member of the royal family!" Malty said with venom in her tone.

"I'll speak that way to the Queen if I have to!" Elhart yelled, likely getting face to face with the princess. Naofumi imagined him being a lot taller and being far more intimidating. "First you search my quarters without a warrant, and now this!? Unless you want me to close down my shop, move away from the Capital, and explain to your father why his knights will be under-equipped for the coming waves." He left the last part hanging in the air. A threat about word of this actually getting to dear daddy, who most likely wouldn't approve of this kind of behavior from his precious daughter. Especially after the earful Elhart had personally delivered to him last time about his knights wrecking his store and his living quarters because of a rumor about the Shield Hero being nearby.

Naofumi had to cover his own mouth with his hands. He wanted to laugh so badly it was killing him to hold it all in. 'Elhart, I'm sorry for ever doubting you before.'

He heard an angry huff, presumably from Malty. "Come on! We have other things we need to be doing!" She yelled at the group angrily.

"But what about the materials for my spear-" Motoyasu tried to complain.

"You heard him! We'll just have to wait until he puts them up for sale like everyone else!" Malty said in a commanding tone that left no room for argument. It was most likely her way of saving face from the situation.

Naofumi heard some footsteps going away. He was smiling so widely it was hurting his face. "Why are you so happy, Master Naofumi?" Raphtalia asked. Still not able to comprehend most of what had just transpired. Other than that, apparently, it had been a royal princess and the Spear Hero who had been the reason for the carriage being stopped.

"Let's just say that was one of the best things that has happened to me since I was summoned to this world." He replied genuinely.

At that moment, the crate got lifted back up. Naofumi and Raphtalia felt themselves settle back into the carriage with the other supplies. "Sorry bout that lad. We almost ruined your welcome back party." Jerry said through the wood.

"Yeah, I never thought that this was how we'd meet up again Shield Bro." Elhart's voice sounded through the wood.

"Are you kidding me, that was the best welcome home present I've ever received," Naofumi said lightly with a smile on his face. "The only way it could have been better was if you punched that bitch in the face for me."

"Believe me kid, I was almost tempted there." Elhart chuckled in a deep, booming voice.

"Master Naofumi," Raphtalia said in surprise below him.

"Seriously, if you'd known what she did to me, you'd want to punch her yourself." He said.

"Then why won't you tell me?" She asked.

"Oh, I will... When you're older." He replied.

"You say that to me every time I ask about what happened before you bought me!" Raphtalia complained.

"Because you still act like a little kid when I say no."

"I do not!" She said like a little kid.

Outside, the two grown men looked at each other. "Were they like this when you first met them?" Jerry asked his friend curiously.

Elhart shrugged. "I didn't get to know them for all that long. Maybe you could fill me in on what you know after we put them in a real bed." He replied. "Also, I'm guessing you brought them here because you couldn't provide them armor?" Elhart asked.

"That, and Shield Kid probably still needs to register for the Wave. It's hard to get good materials these days. I barely had the materials handy to make the Miss a proper sword!" Jerry said happily.

Elhart sighed. "And I'm guessing you want back pay for the princess inconveniencing you?" He asked.

"Oh, absolutely!" Jerry readily agreed. "I almost peed me pants when the royal princess stopped me little wagon." He looked down at himself. "Actually, Ay'm mistaken. I did pee me pants."

Elhart sighed again. "This better be one expensive suit of armor the kid wants me to make." He grumbled to himself.

Hero Clips!

Spill the Beans

"Spill the beans, just how do those two act around each other now?"

Elhart and Jerry sat at a table in the back of the blacksmith shop. The two held cups of mead in their hands.

"You wouldn't believe it Elhart. The lad's denser than a pile of bricks! He gave me measurements of the lassie's body, and it's like he's *&^%ing blind!"

"You're kidding me?"

"I mean, just look at what he said her chest size was."

Elhart looked over the measurements himself. He almost wanted to guffaw. "Holy hell, the kid is blind. I know I said little Miss, but she ain't so little anymore. Do you think he needs a pair of glasses friend?"

"Hell if I know. It might explain why the lassie came out so embarrassed. I wouldn't be surprised if he accidentally groped where he wasn't supposed to." Jerry offhandedly mentioned.

"Wait, the two of them measured each other!?" Elhart gasped.

"Yeah, the laddie seemed mighty embarrassed about it too. You'd think he'd never seen a woman's body before."

"Oh, this is very, very interesting." Elhart started to grin widely. He'd have ammo to tease the shield bro with for weeks, years even. He started cackling menacingly. "I need everything else you know. This is a gold mine I can't pass up!"

Jerry suddenly regretted opening his mouth because of the look on Elhart's face. But the mead soon took over again and he grinned jovially. "Why, there was also a break I took before we reached the Capital! I opened the crate to see how they were doing, and the laddie's head was resting on her-"

The world would never know what Naofumi's head had been resting on.

Till Next Time

Allen